Stocks Closed at Record on Economic Data

U.S. stocks closed at records on Thursday, after a batch of economic data suggested the economy was picking up speed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 135.53 points, or 0.65%, to 21,144.18. The S&P 500 gained 18.26 points, or 0.76%, to 2,430.06. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 48.31 points, or 0.78%, to 6,246.83.

The ADP private sector employment report showed 253,000 jobs were added in May, well above the 185,000 estimated by economists polled by Reuters.

U.S. manufacturing continued to churn higher in May, according to a survey of purchasing managers released Thursday. The Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing index edged up a 10th of a point to 54.9%.

Oil prices gave up nearly all of their earlier gains Thursday on Nymex to finish only modestly higher for the session, while Brent crude prices ended lower, suffering back-to-back losses. July West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 4 cents, or less than 0.1%, to settle at $48.36 a barrel. August Brent crude lost 13 cents, or 0.3%, to end at $50.63.

Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc. (RH) on Thursday reported a loss of $3.4 million in its fiscal first quarter. On a per-share basis, the company said it had a loss of 9 cents. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, came to 5 cents per share.